Control means for rotary motor



Nov. 22, 1955 E. a. BA'RRETT CONTROL MEANS FOR ROTARY MOTOR Original Filed March 20, 1951 INVENTOR ELMER G. BARRETT ATT( )RNEY Patented Nov. 22, 1955 p 2,724,369 CONTROL MEANS FOR ROTARY MOTOR Elmer G. Barrett, Pampa, Tex.

Original application March 20, 1951, Serial No. 216,583,

now Patent No. 2,681,046, dated June 15, 1954. Divided and this application May 6, 1954, Serial No.

2 Claims. (Cl. 121-83) This invention relates to a rotary motor or other fluid displacement devices such as pumps, compressors or the like, and in particular to an improved combined valve and steam exhaust member therefor. r

In. the instant embodiment of my invention a rotary motor of the type shown in my copending application Serial No. 216,583, filed March 20, 1951, entitled Rotary Motor, is shown havinga two-part piston vane connected rotor providing therein an expansion chamber during each revolution of the rotor. The engine also includes as an essential part thereof, a casing, certain walls of which cooperate with the vane connected piston parts to cause relative movement therebetween under the expansion action of an operating fluid admitted to the casing and rotor.

This application is a division of my co-pending application Serial No. 216,583, filed March 20, 1951, entitled Rotary Motor, issued June 15, 1954, as U. S. Patent No. 2,681,046.

The primary object of my invention is to provide a rotary motor, in which the central rotor disk member is formed for lateral guiding movement of the vane type pistons and the piston carrying rings and cooperating casing walls provide a pair of operating chambers, in which organization the side walls of the casing also serve as thrust bearings for the piston carrying rings. In this organization the operating chambers at the bottom portion of the casing are of a width equal to the thickness of the rings and gradually increase to maximum width at Fig. 1 is a transverse vertical sectional view of the rotary motor in accordance with a preferred structural embodiment thereof;

Fig. 2 is a fragmental vertical sectional view of the motor base and lower part of the casing and showing steam ports extending from a valve opening in the base to the interior of the casing;

Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view of a combined valve and steam exhaust member and is taken in the plane of line 3--3 on Fig.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but taken in the plane of line 44 on Fig. 5;

Fig. 5 is a plan View of the combined valve and steam exhaust member;

Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic plan view for clarification of description of the valve controlled ports in the engine base. i

Referring now in detail to the drawings there, is shown therein a motor of the type disclosed in my copending application, supra, wherein the improved motor com-' United States Patent Ofiice prises a casing including opposed cooperating sections 10 and 11. The casing sections are of like construction and each comprises a hub section 12 including a vertical wall 13, and an annular wall 14 extending inwardly from the perimeter of the vertical wall and having an inner spherical surface 15.

The wall 14 is of a variable extent, being of substantial length at the bottom thereof and gradually diminishing in length to the top thereof as is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

An annular side wall 16 extends outwardly from the inner terminal of wall 14 and the annular wall 16 is of frusto-conical form having its axis inclined upwardly in a transverse vertical plane of the casing.

The annular side walls 16 of the casing sections merge into peripheral walls 17 having inner spherical surfaces and which are of substantial length at the top of the casing and gradually decrease in length toward the bottom of the casing. The casing sections further include adjacent annular walls 18 which are displaced outwardly of walls 17 in the provision of a relatively wide piston guide member seat 19.

The casing sections at the bottom thereof present a plane surface as indicated at 20, see Fig. 1, and such surface engages the top surface 21 of a base 22, to which the casing sections are suitably secured as by bolts, not shown.

The casing sections 10, 11 at the inner terminal of walls 18 are provided with outwardly directed flanges 23 which are removably held in engagement with each other by bolts 24.

The walls 13 of the hub portions 12 are provided with bores 25 for rotatably receiving spaced portions of a drive shaft 26 and the walls 12 are further provided with inwardly directed annular flanges 27 surrounding the bores 25 and within which and about the shaft 26 are dis posed antifriction bearing assemblies 28.

The walls 13 are each provided on their outer face surrounding the bore 25 with a cylindrical flange 29, whose inner wall is spaced from shaft 26 to provide a packing gland whose outer wall is threaded. A cylindrical packing compressing member 30 is slidably supported on shaft 26 and is movable within the space between flange 29 and shaft 26 to compress a packing material 31 therein when a nut 32, having .an internally threaded annular flange 33 is threaded on flange 29. At such time the shaft receiving wall 34 of the nut engages with the end of the packing compressing member 30. The

frusto-conical side walls 16 of the two casing sections are each provided with annular ball bearing races 35.

Disposed within the casing is a fluid pressure operated rotor which comprises a member 36 for guiding piston supporting rings as well as the pistons themselves and t which also divide the casing into a pair of laterally spaced annular expansion chambers for the working fluid.

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the hubs 36 are recessed at their outer ends, as at 37, for reception of the antifriction supporting bearing assemblies 28. A nut 38 is shown threaded on shaft. section 26 and engaging the bottom of the recess in the other hub. These hubs are thus secured together against axial separation on the center shaft section and by provision of the shaft key 39, the hubs are at all times rotatable with the shaft in unison.

' Radiating from an intermediate portion of each hub 36 is a disk-like wall or web 40 which merges into aninwardly directed peripheral flange 41. The inner opposed ends of the two flanges 41 thus abut in the plane of the juncture of the casing flanges 23 and the abutting faces of which. rotor divides thecasing --11. into a. pair of side walls 16am of 'convex frustotconicalform'they are also inclined so that the portions at thebottom of the casingand in a vertical plane'including the axis of the shaft 26 are spaced from-the adjacent sidewalls of the centrally disposedrotors adistancesubstantially equal to the thickness of the piston rings 42. The fr'ustoconical-walls 16 of the casing andadjacent portions of the piston carryingrings .42-are vertically disposed in this plane. Theworkifigor-expansionchambers are therefore laterally confined by the central rotor walls 40 and outer ring-walls 42; and acco'rdingly these: working chambers are; of: zero width in the referredrto plane and increase in widtlt circumferentially of the casing from either side of said plane to the top of the casing where the chambers aresof maximurn width-inthe'same plane.

This-=form-of"tlie working-and expansion chambers is constant eventhough successive circumferential points on saidconfining walls successively pass-through said plane-upon-rotationthereof.in-unison, which is effected by maintaining connection of the hubs 36- with driven shaft 26,-and engagement of the ring piston vanes 44 of the central rotor at the upper widest portions of the expansion chambers, as-is-shown in Figs. 1 and 2;

Provisi'onis mad'e'for admission of a working fluid such-as steam, to and exhaustion-thereofffrom the expansion chambers, which are designated and 61, and

accordingly the casing peripheral walls 17 areprovided with ports, Fig. 2, which aredi'sposed atopposite sides and closely adjacent thelines of'positiveclosure between the chamber at the bottomof the casing wherein the piston vane carrying rings 42 contact the walls 40; These lines ofcontact orchamber closure at-the-narrow portion thereof are indicated at 62 in Figs, 2' and 6, and each chamber is-provided with a port 63 at each side of contact line-'62, such ports extending; through the casing sectionbottom walls and being'intake ports or exhaust ports at opposite sides of said line dependingupon'the direction of rotation of the rotor, as determined by the control valve.

The base 22 is provided with a transverse bore 64 for receiving arotary valve member and a plurality of ports are formed in this base extending vertically from the bore 64 and communicating with the casing ports 63. The ports in the base are designated 65, 66, 67 and 68, ports 65 and 66 communicating with ports63 of chamber 60 andports 67 and 68 communicating withports 63 of chamber 61. The base 22 is also-provided with a working fluid inlet port- 69 communicatingwith an outer connection 70-to a source'of supply. The inlet and exhaust of the working fluid is controlled by the rotary valve 71 which comprises a cylindrical body member 72 rotatably mounted in the bore 64 in the base22 and'provided with an annular flange 73 at one end thereof for engagement with the corresponding end of'the base.

The valve body 72, at its opposite end, is provided with a tubular extension 74, whose bore 75 extends sub stantially within the body 72, axially thereof, for communication with an exhaust port in said-body. This extension 74 is externally threaded adjacent the base 22, as at 76, and a nut 77 is threadedly engaged-on these threads for adjustably urging a friction washer 78 into engagement with that end of the base for retaining the valve against axial movement in the base. The opposite end of the valve body is also provided with an axial extension 79 to which an operating handle 80 is secured for manual rotation of the valve.

Now with reference to Figs. 3, 4, 5 and 6 it will be seen that the valve body 72 is provided near one. end with a transversely extending through passageway of Y-f orrn providing three: circumferentiallyspaced ports 82, 83 and 84..in thecylindrica'l surface'ofthe valve.. These ports82, 833and584 are in the ventical'plane of ports 67 68 and, 69

4 inthe bas e 22 as shown in Fig. 1. Here it will also be seen that near the opposite end of this rotary valve 72 the cylindrical body is further provided with diametrically disposed through passageways and ports 85 and 86 which communicate at one end with the centrally disposed exhaust port bore 75 and which are disposed in the vertical plane of ports 65 and 66, in the base 22, for selective registration therewith at their opposite ends.

Extending into the cylindrical surface of the valve 72 between the planes designated by the lines 33 and 44, in Fig. 5, is a connecting groove of Y-forin havingits base end 88 terminating in theplane ofports 65, 66, 85 and 86 and its branch ends 89'and 90 terminating in the plane of ports 81, 67 and 68.

When this rotary valvebody is in the position of Fig. 5, as observed from above, no working fluid will be admitted to the casing ports 63 since ports 82 and 83 are disposed at opposite sides of the inlet port 69, and closed by the bore of the base 22.

Upon rotation of the valve body through an angle of 45, as for example clockwise, port 83- will be aligned with inlet port. 69 and port84will align with port 68, in the base so that the working fluid will be admittedto expansion chamber 61. Accordingly the rotor assembly will turn in the direction of arrow A, in Fig. 6. At this time the chamber 61v will be exhausting throughrport 67 into one of the forked ends 89 of, the Y-shaped groove 87 in I to the exhaust bore 75.

Upon rotation of the valve body in the opposite direction or anti-clockwise, the motor will be reversed in direction of the arrow B, in Fig. 6, with the above described operation.

While I have shown and described my invention as embodied in an improved type ofrotary motor withsome degree of particularity, it will be realized that other modifications and changes maybe resorted to under special conditions. I, therefore, do not wish to be limited and restricted to the exact details shown and described, but reserve the right to make suchchanges andmodifications as may fairly fall within the scope of the subject matter now being claimed. i

What I claim is:

1. In a multiple expansion type rotary motor including a casinghaving a rotor disk journalled therein defining a plurality of work expansion chambers, and two pair of inlet and exhaust ports in the peripheral wall of the casing, the improvement comprising abase supporting the casing having a transverse bore therein, two pair of port means in said base placing said bore incommunication. with said pairs of inlet and exhaust ports, a. second means providing communication of said bore with a supply source of working fluid under pressure, a rotary valve controlling the working fluid, said valve comprising a cylindrical body member rotatably mounted in the bore of said base, means retaining said valve against axial movement in said bore, said rotary valve body member being provided near one end with a transversely extending through-passageway of Y-form defining three circumferentially spaced ports, said valve body member ports being inthe same transverse plane and positioned to selectively communicate with one pair of said port means and said second means in said base, the opposite end of said rotary valve body member having diametrically disposed through-passageways communicating with said bore in said base and in the same transverse plane and positioned to selectively communicate with the other pair of said,

port means. in said base, the longitudinal surface of the The transverse plane of and intermediate the diametrically disposed through-passageways and positioned to selectively communicate with said second mentioned pair of valve body ports, the branch ends of said groove terminating in the transverse plane of said transversely extending Y-form through-passageway and positioned to selectively communicate with the first mentioned pair of ports and means for manually rotating said valve bodyto a plurality of operative positions placing a supply source of working fluid in communication with the chambers of the casing to selectively operate the motor in either forward or reverse rotation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,208,177 Barrett July 16, 1940 

